One of the best things about running this site is that I often get to see pastry chefs grow.  Antonio Bachour is one chef whose career I have really enjoyed following.

I was introduced to Antonio and his desserts nearly three years ago when he was the Executive Pastry Chef at Quattro in the Trump Hotel in Soho.  Since then, Bachour has been on a tear.  After accepting a job as the Executive Pastry Chef at the St. Regis Bal Harbour Resort in Miami, he was honored as a Top 10 Pastry Chef in the US and nearly won the overall prize at the 2011 StarChefs International Pastry Competition. (more…)

Special Features | 2 Comments »

Banana passion fruit pavlova from Dominique Ansel Bakery - passion fruit meringue, flambeed bananas, coconut lime cream

Our first post from the “best of” NYC walking tour is here.

Part II: Our first stop at the Doughnut Plant was quite filing so we needed to walk.  After a brief stop at the Essex Street Market, we walked across town to Soho where we took a savory break with some spicy cumin lamb with hand-Ripped noodles, courtesy of X’ian Famous foods (X’ian Famous foods is not located anywhere near DAB, our next stop,  but Doctore wanted us all to try them).  It turned out to be the perfect savory hedge against our sweet-centric day. (more…)

Dominique Ansel Bakery | 1 Comment »

The chocolate hazelnut creme doughnut has bit of hazelnut in the glaze and the chocolate filling is lighter than you expect

So, two chefs, an acupuncturist and a blogger walk into a doughnut shop…

Two weeks ago on a warm-ish Saturday morning I met up with three other hungry individuals at the Lower East Side location of the Doughnut Plant.  My partners for the day consisted of a pastry student, a savory chef, who just accepted a job at one of the top restaurants in the US and Doctore, an acupuncturist who is also an accomplished baker and sometime contributor to DessertBuzz.  We planned to spend the day walking to some of our favorite dessert and pastry spots.  The sole criteria to determine who we would visit, was that each establishment had to have at least one product that was in the mix for “best of New York City”.  A secondary goal was to not go into insulin shock. (more…)

Bisousciao Macarons, Doughnut Plant | 2 Comments »

Earl Grey dessert from Le Bernardin Executive Pastry Chef Laurie Jon Moran

I recently checked in at Le Bernardin to see what their “new” Executive Pastry Chef, Laurie Jon Moran, was up to.  It’s been about a year since he replaced Michael Laiskonis at the 3-star Michelin restaurant and I figured that was enough time for him to put his stamp on their dessert offerings.  A quick glance at the menu supported the theory that it was now his alone, as there was no sign of  Lasikonis’ iconic egg dessert.

Mr. Laurie came to Le Bernadin after a recent two-year stint at Per Se.  Before that he worked at Picholine and spent a number of years at Daniel.  A short interview follows this feature. (more…)

Best fancy pants restaurant desserts, Best of New York City, Le Bernardin | 5 Comments »

The ceci cela croissant - DessertBuzz (and Serious Eats) say this is the best in NYC

This past Saturday I had the pleasure of taking two up-and-coming chefs (one on the savory side and one in pastry) on a tour of some of New York’s best desserts.   One of our stops included the slightly under-the-radar Cesi Cela for their croissant and almond croissant.  The former is considered by many, including this blog (and SeriousEats), to be the best in New York City. At this level the things that separate the excellent from the very best are subtle.  The group agreed the flakiness of the crust was perfect along with a nice buttery finish that didn’t leave you too full. (more…)

Best of New York City, Ceci Cela | No Comments »